A Row of Small Knots

Evening settled in. I returned indoors through the lobby and clicked along the quiet floorboards to the entryway. A pair of running shoes rested by the wooden rack. The fabric was messy, but one spare white lace trailed along the wood grain. Step one. I lowered my beak and caught the stiff plastic tip. Step two. With two measured hops, I pulled the cord straight, then looped it around a round wooden peg on the rack's lower rail. A firm tug locked the curve in place. The dangling ends formed three clean, parallel loops hanging into the shadows. Order returned to the corner. I settled my feet and stood steady.